The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal has kept its roots firmly planted downtown since its origins more than 126 years ago.
As the oldest continually operating business in Lubbock, those beginnings were humble - with the first weekly issue of what was called the Lubbock Avalanche printed May 4, 1900 in the back room of a one-story frame building on the northeast corner of Main Street and Texas Avenue. That's where the paper shared space in co-founder J.J. Dillard’s law office, according to attorney and historian Chuck Lanehart'stwo-part Caprock Chronicles seriesthat explored the A-J's origins.
The paper would eventually move to a larger location at 1211 Texas Ave., where the Mahon Federal Building stands. The A-J re-located again in 1959 to 710 Ave. J.
That location served our publication and community well over the last 67 years. It survived the devastating 1970 tornado - despite taking severe damage - and was our home as the A-J covered countless milestones in our community's history.
And just like our community, the A-J continues to evolve and adapt to meet the needs of the future.
Lubbock A-J's new location downtown
Starting this month, the A-J newsroom is moving to a new downtown location in a recently renovated historic building at 615 Broadway. Coincidentally, our new newsroom is located just a few blocks away from where the publication started in 1900.
The move comes as our operation's needs have changed over the years. Quite simply, we don't need the real-estate we once did in this evolving age of largely digital-driven journalism.
Those changes have fueled the A-J's online growth. Our metrics show that we are delivering local news to as many people today as ever as the A-J's team continues to cover stories of impact around our community and region.
Our new office is conveniently within walking distance of key locations our reporters work as we cover stories in our community, including Citizens Tower and Lubbock's county and federal courthouses.
We've always been rooted in downtown Lubbock, and that's not changing.
Our new location will better serve our newsroom's evolving needs and provide a space to visit with members of our community.
While our newsroom will continue to operate on a by-appointment-only basis for the public as we have in recent years, we are committed to being accessible to our readers and the community.
We love to have guests and visitors.
We encourage anyone wanting to reach out to us with news tips, questions or concerns or to schedule a visit to call our general newsroom number at 806-766-8644, email us at newmedia@lubbockonline or sports@lubbockonline.com. You can also send a letter to our new address - 615 Broadway, Lubbock, TX 79401 - or to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, P.O. Box 491, Lubbock, TX 79408.
Adam D. Young is the Editor of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal and Amarillo Globe-News in Texas. Have a news tip for him? Email him at ayoung@lubbockonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock A-J keeps roots downtown in move to new location
